Defense wins championships. Even in this era where offense is more heavily favored by most, no team can expect to win a title without being able to fight and hustle in the less glamorous side of the floor. Unsurprisingly, the Indiana Pacers easily failed to capture a banner this year or even make the playoffs with their mediocre defense.
The Blue and Gold have perennially been one of the league’s better defensive teams. For quite some time, the team rested its laurels on the brilliance of defensive anchor Myles Turner as the centerpiece on D. However, after their massively disappointing campaign, the Pacers find themselves on the verge of a massive change.
The Indiana Pacers need a bold answer for their big man plight
As I’ve pointed out before, Indiana has to settle the Myles Turner-Domantas Sabonis conundrum. Every passing season, it’s becoming clearer that the big man tandem can only take you so far, especially with their hit-and-miss health and luck with injuries. Problem is, this is also a question of team identity; should the Pacers retain their defensive identity with Turner or go full throttle on offense with Sabonis?
Fans are split between the talented bigs, but with the current outfit of the NBA, keeping Sabonis seems more practical, especially with his extraordinary skillset. Turner is a legitimate DPOY-level defender, but he is by no means irreplaceable, especially when there are alternatives that can offer most of what he does without posing a logjam in the frontcourt. Thus, if the Indiana Pacers were to trade him, who should be his replacement?
Myles Turner Replacement for the Indiana Pacers: Oshae Brissett
We commence with the in-house solution. Perhaps the best late-season signee in recent history, second-year player Oshae Brissett has been one of the brightest spots this season for the Indiana Pacers. After finding himself on the shelf for the most part, the young forward was instrumental to the team’s last stand despite a turbulent campaign.
As the nominal power forward amid a depleted lineup, Brissett started 16 out of 21 games and ended the year registering 10.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and a block per game in 24.7 minutes per contest. Aside from that, he also cashed in 42.3 percent of his triples, arming the Pacers with a legitimate 3-and-D player for the foreseeable future.
It’s unclear how Brissett’s role will look like next season with the current roster since Myles Turner and TJ Warren will be back. Doug McDermott (assuming he re-signs) and Justin Holiday will also undoubtedly get their customary 20-24 minutes per game. However, the Syracuse product will certainly be in line for more minutes if Turner is dealt in the offseason.
No, he isn’t as good as Turner on defense, but he still has loads of room to improve. Already, Brissett is a very capable spot-up shooter who can draw the assignment of taking on the opponents’ best player. Alas, even with his 6’7 frame, he is a very good rebounder and an instinctive help defender, leading to a lot of swatted shots. Really, the only way for Oshae is up, and that may be enough cushion for the Pacers to be confident in dealing their prized shot blocker.
Myles Turner Replacement for the Indiana Pacers: Robert Covington
The Portland Trail Blazers may be tearing the gang up this offseason and if they indeed go that route, the Indiana Pacers should monitor the availability of forward Robert Covington, one of the league’s most disruptive 3-and-D players.
The 8-year veteran has long been considered as one of the elite defensive wings in the league, and that is certainly backed up by his inclusion in the All-Defensive Team in 2018. While he’s far better as a help defender than a one-on-one stopper, RoCo provides instant defensive utility to the court with his natural instincts, activity and length.
While the past season saw Covington record his lowest scoring average since his rookie season, it’s a product of him taking the fewest shots in his career. Nevertheless, he still has value as a catch and shoot threat, tallying a 37.9 percent mark on three-pointers with moderate volume. He’s very streaky on the perimeter, but he knows his role and defense is his calling card.
The thought of Sabonis as the lone rim protector is not very pleasant, but that can be mitigated by having a great first line of defense on the perimeter. And Covington, with his physical tools and experience, can the perfect guy to have just that.
Myles Turner Replacement for the Indiana Pacers: Jonathan Isaac
The next two on this list will be hard gets, but they would probably be the best pieces to complement the current core. First off is Jonathan Isaac who, despite coming off an ACL injury, remains one of the league’s best defensive studs at 23 years-old.
The defensive-minded tweener is one of the most versatile defenders in the league. With a monstrous 6’11, 230-lb frame, Isaac’s aggressive style of defending makes him a perfect replacement for Myles Turner. In 2019-20, he averaged 1.6 steals and 2.3 blocks per game, along with an impressive 6.8 boards per contest despite playing next to Nikola Vucevic and Aaron Gordon.
His offensive arsenal is even more limited than Turner, shooting the three only at a 33 percent clip for his career, including a below-average 43.5 percent mark on the floor, but he’s also never been tasked for a bigger responsibility on offense. He’s shown potential though, especially with his impeccable timing on cuts, as well as his natural agility and athleticism.
Pacers fans should be familiar with Thaddeus Young. Well, Isaac has a higher ceiling than the veteran at his peak and if he can come close to his potential, watch out. Thus, Indiana should at least inquire on his availability, even though he’s recently signed an extension with the Magic.
Myles Turner Replacement for the Indiana Pacers: OG Anunoby
This is very much a pipe dream, especially with the Toronto Raptors viewing OG Anunoby as a potential franchise cornerstone. However, the Indiana Pacers have the assets to make the deal work hypothetically, and the Raps are trending towards a full-scale rebuild.
The upcoming fifth-year player took a tremendous leap last season as an offensive force for the former champions, managing to tally a career-high 15.9 points per game, including a personal best 39.8 percent clip on three-pointers. More impressively, he did this as the fourth option on a Toronto team bannered by Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet and Kyle Lowry.
However, despite his ascent as a scorer, what makes Anunoby stand out is his defensive acumen. He “only” averages 2.2 combined steals and blocks per outing, but the Indiana product relies more on his innate skill to slow down even the best scorers in the league. He is one of the very few who can capably guard all five positions on the floor with ease and consistency.
Getting him will be no easy task, but the Pacers can always overcompensate if they truly want to make this splendid idea a reality. Alas, his improvement curve is reminiscent of Kawhi Leonard when he started off in San Antonio. He may not get there, but his astounding potential will easily elevate the ceiling of the Indiana Pacers with his still-improving two-way prowess.